Hiking and Cooking in the South of France

Pic de Garuche (1089 m) above St Agnès is one of the many mountains where Maginot Line fortifications were built in the 1930s. Situated southeast of Mont Ours (1236 m), an artillery observation post was erected there. Having hiked to both Mont Ours and nearby Pointe Siricocca (1050 m) before, we had not explored this peak before.

On a clear and crispy winter day, we decided to ascend there from Col de Castillon parking (730m) along the trail which passes near the summit of Mont Ours. Another good option is to start from St Agnès (600 m) or Col des Banquettes (736 m). 

Trail start from Old Castillon

Trail to Col de Ségra

Mercantour peaks

From the parking, we first headed south, then west ascending along the forested north-eastern flank of Mont Ours to Col de Ségra (963 m); signpost #125. At the col, we forked left (southeast) and climbed to signposts #126 and 127, the latter at Baisse de Loup (1171 m) just under the summit of Mont Ours. We continued straight (Col Verroux, Ste Agnès) along a wide apparently ex-military trail.

Mont Razet and Grammondo

Near Baisse du Loup

Col Verroux

Military trail to Pic de Garuche

Menton coastline

Pic de Garuche summit

This protein-rich vegetarian dish is made with spices that are typical in different Mediterranean countries.  Ras el hanout is a Moroccan spice mixture of ground black pepper, ginger, mustard grain, cinnamon, muscat, hot pepper, and sweet bell pepper. Piment d’Espelette is a fairly hot ground chilli pepper from the Espelette village in the Basque Country. Saffron threads came with the Arabs to Spain and are now widely used in the Mediterranean countries. 

This spicy dish makes a perfect heart-healthy lunch.

2 servings

2 medium size sweet potatoes

Olive oil

120 ml green lentils

2 shallots, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 medium tomato, finely chopped

1 tbsp. rase el hanout

0,5-1 tsp. Piment d’Espelette, depending how hot you want it

1 dose saffron threads

2 tbsp. tomato purée

200 ml organic passata, Italian tomato sauce

Fresh mint leaves, chopped

Preheat the oven to 200° C roast.

Peel and halve the sweet potatoes. Brush them with olive oil and roast for 25- 30 minutes until soft.

Meanwhile cook the green lentils in a saucepan for about 30 minutes until soft.

Heat 2 tbsp. olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Sauté the shallot and garlic for 5- 10 minutes. Add the chopped tomato, spices, passata, and tomato purée. Reduce the heat to simmering.

When the lentils are cooked, drain any water remaining in the saucepan and add the lentils in the frying pan. Stir and keep simmering.

When the sweet potato halves are soft, divide them on the plates. Divide the lentil- passata suce on top and decorate with chopped mint.

The village of Tanneron (~400 m elev.) has become the unofficial capital of the mimosa. From January to March, the mimosa colours yellow the hill flanks above Mandelieu-la-Napoule. Not part of the original flora, the mimosa tree was originally imported from Australia and thrives in Côte d’Azur.

Several families in Tanneron now cultivate mimosa and export flowers to all France and beyond. Numerous varieties of the mimosa exist which explains the long flowering season.

Lots of visitors come to the small village to admire the yellow flowers in mid-winter, and many wish to take advantage of shorter or longer hiking routes in the surrounding hills.

We made the long (16+ km) but very popular Ridge of Tanneron (Circuit Les Crêtes de Tanneron) loop hike on a pleasant February day.

Some time ago, we had a delightful lunch on the terrace of an Italian restaurant in Merrick Park, Coral Gables. The fish was a prized South Floridian red snapper, lightly flowered and pan-fried. It was served on an olive oil-tomato-caper sauce with potato gratin, Gratin Dauphinois, and green beans. The dish was colourful and traditionally Italian.

My recipe is inspired by this lunch. I use fillets of cod, breaded and oven-roasted. The sauce is traditional French sauce vierge with added capers. For the recipe, you could use any fresh tasty white fish fillets such as cod, monkfish, sea bass and so on.

2 servings

2 pieces of cod fillet, about 120 g each

2 tbsp. bread crumbs

Olive oil

For the sauce vierge:

50 ml tasty organic extra virgin olive oil

Juice of ¼ lemon

A dash of pressed garlic

Freshly ground black pepper

1 ripe medium tomato

2 tsp. small capers

Chopped basil or parsley

Preheat the oven to 200°C, roast.

Chop the tomato into very small pieces and place in a bowl. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, pressed garlic, black pepper, and capers and mix. Let the tomato marinate while you prepare the fish. Just before serving, mix with chopped fresh herbs.

Coat an oven-proof dish with olive oil and pace the fish fillets in it. Cover the fillets with breadcrumbs and drizzle over some olive oil. Roast for about 10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillets.

When the fish is done, divide the sauce vierge on the plates and place the fish on top. Serve with potato gratin and microwaved green beans.

On one of our recent hikes from Col de Castillon (signpost#135 at 706 m), we saw a temporary sign on the Baisse de Scuvion (1154 m) mountain pass indicating a direct path up to the nearby summit of Mont Razet (1286 m). On today’s hike we wanted to explore this option. The route was not shown on the normal hiking map, but interestingly the OpenStreetMap shows a trail between the Baisse de Scuvion and Mont Razet.

The mountains above Menton have an extensive network of trails, and we have become quite familiar with them. We have circled Mont Razet many times and climbed to the mountain top along the marked itinerary from la Pierre Pointue (1168 m; signpost #93a).

Mont Razet consists of a ridge where its northernmost point just above the Baisse de Scuvion is 1 m higher (1287 m) than the main peak. 

Trail crossroads near Biatonéa

Heading to Baisse de Scuvion

Col de Castillon viewed from trail

Near Baisse de Scuvion

Shortcut to Mont Razet

Near Mont Razet Ridge

Mont Razet ridge

Mont Razet summit seen from north

Mont Razet summit

Bunkers on Mont Razet ridge

Trail track to Mont Razet

This spring risotto recipe is my twist of a lunch we had one beautiful day in May on the terrace of a restaurant in Nice. The green asparagus and small purple artichokes, artichauts violets, are much appreciated local spring vegetables in the South of France. 

2 servings

For the risotto:

120 ml carnaroli or arborio rice

Olive oil

150 ml white wine

1- 2 shallots, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

About 700 ml chicken stock (you may not need it all)

About 2 handfuls of grated parmesan

For the vegetables:

4 small purple artichokes, artichauts violets

8 cherry tomatoes, halved

4 green asparagus

Juice of ½ lemon

8 black olives, pitted

About a handful of fresh basil leaves

Olive oil a pinch of salt

First prepare the vegetables and keep them refrigerated until needed.

Prepare a very green herb sauce by crushing the chopped basil leaves and a pinch of salt in a mortar with a pestle. Add olive oil into a nice sauce consistence, then cover and keep in the fridge.

Prepare the artichokes by cutting away the tops of the leaves and about 1 cm from the stems. Remove all the tough outer leaves. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil and add the lemon juice. Cook the artichokes for 8 minutes. Remove from the saucepan, cut into quarters and remove the fuzzy centre with a teaspoon. Place the artichokes in a bowl, cover and keep refrigerated.

Peel the green asparagus and cut away the tough stems. Cut them into about 3- 4 cm long pieces and microwave for a few minutes until soft. Place them in the fridge. 

Cook the risotto the classic way. Warm 2 tbsp. olive oil over medium heat in a heavy cocotte, such as Le Creuset, and sauté the shallot and garlic for 5- 10 minutes. add the rice and stir until well coated with the oil. Cook for 25 minutes adding the liquid, first the wine then the stock, ladle by ladle stirring continually. The rice should be al dente, cooked but firm to the bite. Remove the cocotte from the heat and stir in the parmesan.

Just before the risotto is ready, warm 1 tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan. Quickly sauté the cherry tomato halves and warm the artichokes, asparagus, and black olives for a few minutes.

Divide the risotto into bowls and place the vegetables on top. Surround the risotto with the green basil sauce.

One February not long ago, we hiked to Mont Ours from Ste-Agnès. We now decided to do a loop hike passing through three cols above the village: Col de Verroux (935 m), Col des Banquettes (736 m) and Pas de la Piastre (935 m). It turned out to be another great winter experience in the mountains so near the Mediterranean coast.

As before, we parked at the village entrance (about 600 m elev.) and headed towards Col de Verroux along the well-signposted (#441, 442, 444, 445) trail. After a brief descent to Peyre Grosse (a few houses), we ascended above Ravin de Verroux eventually joining an ancient military track before the Col.

View east from Ste-Agnès

Trail leaving Ste-Agnès

   

Pointe Siricocca and Mont Ours

Trail after signpost#443

Ravin de Verroux

Old military track near Col de Verroux

Col de Verroux

From Pas de la Piastre under Cime de Bausson (1087 m), we had a great view down to Ste-Agnès, with a glimpse of the coastline at Menton. From here, we descended rapidly back to our starting point.

Distance: 9,5 km

Climb: 605 m

Duration: 3h 45 active hiking time

Map: “Nice-Menton” Côte d’Azur 3742 OT

Cime de Baudon

Path south of Col des Banquettes

Hike track from Ste-Agnès

For this recipe, you will need very thin chicken or turkey escalopes. Thin; store- bought escalopes should be placed between two sheets of aluminium foil and rolled to make them even thinner.

If possible, choose grilled and salted pistachios for the stuffing. Peeled pistachios can also be grilled in a dry frying pan with some salt added.

2 servings

2 very thin chicken or turkey escalopes

Olive oil

100 ml white wine

A handful of peeled pistachios and pine nuts

1 shallot, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

½ small courgette, finely chopped

A handful of baby spinach leaves

Freshly ground black pepper

½ tsp. dried Provençal herbs

Kitchen string

Preheat the oven to 180° C, roast.

In a mortar, crush the peeled, grilled and salted pistachios and pine nuts with a pestle. Chop the courgette into small pieces.

Warm 2 tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Sautè the courgette, shallot, and garlic for about 10 minutes until soft. Add the pistachios, pine nuts, and some black pepper. Add the spinach and continue cooking for a few minutes until the spinach is wilted.

Divide the stuffing on the escalopes and roll them. Tie the rolls with string.

Heat 1 tbsp. olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and fry the rolls on both sides until golden. Place the rolls in a small oven- proof dish and pour the white wine around them. Transfer to oven and cook for 20 minutes. 

Serve with rice mix and green beans.